Sun Hing Restaurant

Sun Hing's servers in Kennedy Town carry each batch of dim sum out of the steamer and ask the room for takers, starting at 3am.

Why go

Sun Hing makes its dim sum by hand on Smithfield Road in Kennedy Town and serves it from the small hours to the afternoon, every day.1 The early start goes back to the customers the room was built on. Angelina Hue, who talked to the family and staff in 2017, says many worked at the wholesale markets, slaughterhouses, and factories or were bus and tram drivers.2 When Jericho Li of Foodie arrived just after 5am in 2021, the room was almost full of elderly regulars, students from the university and tipsy drinkers.1 Laura Prabowo, co-founder of the bar Penicillin, named it her post-shift spot in 2025: It's wonderfully local and boasts an authentic taste that keeps me coming back for more.4

Wait for the custard bun. Heng-gor told Hue in 2017 it was the most popular thing they make.2 When someone from the kitchen bellowed Golden lava bun, any takers?, Li took one and split it while it was still oozing with the creamy, lava-like egg custard filling. Li's own favorite was the fung jow, chicken feet braised in black bean sauce: The tender, gelatinous skin braised in black bean sauce and garnished with red chilli slices is immensely delicious.1 Anthony Bourdain ate both for Parts Unknown in 2018.7 Li's table of three ate eight dishes for HK$169.1

Find a seat yourself and expect to share a table.5 Servers take each batch from table to table as it leaves the steamer. Whatever nobody claims goes onto a side table for you to help yourself.3 Staff mark the card on your table with what you took.1 There is no English menu and most of the staff speak no English, so Hue's advice is to point at whatever looks good on the next table.2 Time Out's 2026 guide sums it up: It really doesn't get more Hong Kong than this.3

Order this / avoid

Order: the steamed custard bun, 奶黃流沙包. The Ranting Panda in 2019: The texture of the bun is soft, while the custard egg flavour is simply divine.5
Order: the fung jow, chicken feet in black bean sauce (Jericho Li, 2021).1
Order: the cheung fun, a rice roll wrapped round char siu. The Ranting Panda in 2019 called it easily one of the most memorable ones I have had.5
Order: the siu mai, pork and shrimp dumplings. The Ranting Panda in 2019 found a good proportion of the ingredients and a tasty flavour. Laura Prabowo counts them among her must-haves in 2025.5 4
Drink: tea you make yourself. Scoop pu-erh, dragonwell or oolong leaves into a pot, and tilt the lid aside when you want a fresh one (Hue, 2017).2

What locals & experts say

SAVEUR (2026): Annie Atherton: Michelin-starred chefs, street cleaners, and truck drivers all rub elbows at crammed plastic tables.6
Angelina Hue (2020): I would wholeheartedly recommend Sun Hing over most of the suggestions on such lists.2
The Ranting Panda (2019): on the char siu bao, a pretty decent version with my much surprise. You could skip this if you fancy something else. Prabowo and Li both name the bun.5

Good to know

Price: eight dishes for three people came to HK$169 in 2021.1
Timing: every day from the small hours to the afternoon. The room was almost full soon after 5am in 2021.1 3
Booking: none. Walk in and expect to wait for a seat and for the food.5
Where: Shop C, G/F, Markfield Building, 8 Smithfield Road, Kennedy Town, about five minutes' walk from Kennedy Town MTR. The Chinese name is 新興食家.5

Verdict

should-visit — Go to Sun Hing in Kennedy Town in the small hours for dim sum made by hand and claimed straight off the steamer, and take a custard lava bun when the kitchen calls it out. Eight dishes came to HK$169 in 2021. Expect to share a table, point at what you want, and wait for both seats and food.

Sun Hing Restaurant.